TEARS OF OIL

TEARS OF OIL

TEARS OF OIL

Graveyard of petals
Bloomed and buried
Right before the sun caress
Where lies the roots
Shedding tears of oil

Dialogue of drunk gloats
Today the giant of Africa
Stood like a barricaded water
North to South
Windows zipped

Tears of Oil. Source: Internet images

Tears of Oil. Source: Internet images

Harvest of rage
Verbal artillery
Citing on claw papers
Sovereign massacre
Rape of headlines
With thick soot
Flaring smoke

Rather see them smouldering
Than perfect gun battle
Streets wail in opened fangs
Spitting venoms
Paralysing alongside cramps
An African abode

AWA CHIGOZIE JEROME

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

‎Awa Chigozie is a Nigerian. A student and resident of Abia State in Nigeria. He is a prolific writer whose keen interest is in poetry and fictional works. He has poems which have been published in anthologies and other media. He describes his works as a mirror to man’s act. Presently working towards releasing his first poetry collection.

THE PROMISING LAND

THE PROMISING LAND

PROMISING LAND

A land I used to cherish
And a promising one,
A land of merry colourful birds
Flying in a quiet blue sky…
It was the land of my fathers,
It was the land of my mothers,
The land of the father of my mothers,
The land of the mother of my fathers,

The promising land

The promising land

When I was my ancestors,
When I was the ancestor of my ancestors,
When I was the lion, when I was the oak tree,
When I was the king praised by the rivers,
When the fresh green nature
The breath of which used to caress me,
Whispered me the answers to my questions…
Nature and I were one being,
Sky and earth were of the same colour,
I could go wherever I wanted,
A single smile was the key to happiness,
But now I’m a long way home,
I’m wandering in the desert among shadows,
Searching for the shadow of my ancestors,
The shadow of my promising land.

 

RAY NDEBI

 

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

My name is Théodore René Ndebi, born in Cameroon. I graduated in Banking Management. But what really makes me proud and happy is WRITING !!!!! I started writing around 1990. I write the most I can.

I mostly write for children’s future. As a child, I had always dreamt of a world where poor children and orphans could be happy as well. I have many unpublished collections in French: Chaque Jour Un Poème, Rêve D’un Soir, La Missive Du Petit Prince, Suis-Je Assez Bien Pour Toi… I’m also author of unpublished novels in French (Cierge Noir, Plus Violent Que L’amour, Les Fruits De La Tempête…). My first published novel; THE LAST GHOST/Son Of Struggle got published in 2013 by AuthorhouseUK; it appears in the LOS Angeles Times Festival Of Books Catalogue 2014 Page 8. Available online @ Amazon, Kindle, AuthorhouseUK, Barnes & Noble, Indie. I wrote numerous award winning texts. I am a Book Reviewer and Translator. I am a member of OneAfricanChild since 2013 and Co-Founder of Le Salon Du Livre Yaounde-Cameroon.

MOTHERS ARE THE TRUE HEROES

MOTHERS ARE THE TRUE HEROES

MOTHERS ARE THE TRUE HEROES!

To describe my mother would be to write about a hurricane in its perfect power. Or the climbing, falling colors of a rainbow. – American poet, Maya Angelou.

 

I love photography. I love capturing beautiful moments. And the above picture is just one of those beautiful moments.

You see, I came from a family of five girls and a boy, a closely knit one. However, we all dread my father. Silence reigns supreme whenever he is at home. We do not talk anyhow when Daddy is around. Your words should be well calculated and spoken with grace. We fear, respect and adore my father.

Unfortunately, we relegate Mum to the background. We take her for granted and we are of the opinion that she is there to do everything; and by everything, I mean every single thing; but we do not dread Mother. With Mum, you can say whatever the hell you want to say. You can tell Mum about the stupid teachers you have and the grammatical errors they make. I will not forget to mention the fact that Mum is a TEACHER in CHURCH and in the Government Secondary School just across the street.

Back to when this picture was taken, my siblings had just arrived home for mid-term break and had this science assignment called “Electrolysis”. I’m the first child and I told them strictly not to bother me with it.
(Please I have no interest in SCIENCE but I LOVE TECHNOLOGY).

They had so many assignments and had no idea on how to begin. Mum had already spent the past few hours in helping them mold the fine art assignment.

Electrolysis in action!

Electrolysis in action!

 

It was Friday, Electrolysis had to be submitted and Mummy had said she was tired; but her twin babies were so frustrated. They had tried everything possible, called on all friends for help yet the electrolysis wasn’t electrolyzing (Whatever that means).

Anyway, my Mum decided to give it a try and alas! The diffusion and reaction and all the science-ish started happening. It was just like magic. It was at that moment I knew my mum was a HERO and the above picture was taken.

Meanwhile, my Dad kept saying repeatedly “Hope you people have done your assignments o. Pack your things and get ready to go to school on Saturday”; with no idea of the feat his darling wife had achieved in the afternoon.

I remember this incident when I had a “boil”* in my right eye. It was so big and embarrassing. So I called my Dad who immediately sent money for me to get antibiotics that sold for #3000. In my head, I am like “If I hear say I buy medicine for 3k”. I was already looking forward to buying the pill that costs #150.00. When Dad called that evening I told him I had bought it [The lie was necessary].

THE next morning, Mama called and said “Chichi, I know you’ve not bought that drug. I know you! You know you can’t deceive me”. I was so shocked that I burst into laughter. My mum joined me in laughing and with no hesitation; I went to buy the medication.

Being a mother is not an easy task. In fact, most times I have these random thoughts in my head, “being a mum is scary, can I cope? Guess I will have just one child to make things easier”.
A mother always knows her child. This is the point where I quote Rudyard Kipling – “God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made mothers.”

I love my dad too. I could die for him. But Mum, this is for you.

 

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I’m Onwukwe Chimdinma Adriel. A 400 level Law student of the Prestigious University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. I love writing. You can see some of my works here: www.adrielzjournal2013.wordpress.com and subscribe to my channel; BBM Channel : C0016FD7F

BRING BACK OUR GIRLS NOW

BRING BACK OUR GIRLS NOW

#BringBackOurGirlsNow

We’ve endured the pain for so long
But our feeling is still strong
There’s still hope for us
Our girls will return to us

Our hearts weep
And we hardly sleep
Our girls are still missing
And we keep thinking and crying

365 days in bondage
At a very young age
I swear I can’t bear it
But our girls are bearing the heat

Tears in my eyes
I wish I could pay the price
For the freedom of our girls
Our precious pearls

Nobel Peace Prize Winner for 2014, Malala campaigning against the kidnapping of the Chibok girls. Source: internet images.

Nobel Peace Prize Winner for 2014, Malala campaigning against the kidnapping of the Chibok girls. Source: internet images.

We don’t even know where they are
Near or far
That’s the most painful part
That pierces my heart

I know what the mothers cry for
But I can’t explain the agony and the horror
Of losing a daughter in one night
Without being able to give a fight

It took Malala’s words
For our president to search for our wards
We protested
Wept and demonstrated

Bring back our girls Now!

Bring back our girls Now!

But we still hope
Even in pain we still cope
Until our daughters
Return to their mothers.

#ChibokGirls
#NeverToBeForgotten

© 2015 by DURODOLA Folarin

 

Dedicated to the more than 200 Chibok girls kidnapped in North-Eastern Nigeria on April 14, 2014.

 

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Durodola Folarin Quadri. Born on the first of January 1991. I attended the university of Ibadan as a student of Agricultural and Environmental Engineering. Editor-in-Chief of the departmental press organisation. I like books and one of the best I ever read was Living, Loving and Learning by Professor Felice Leonardo Buscaglia. I enjoy sports and computer games. Poetry gives me succour when I write about how I feel. Most times I write based on real situations because they inspire me more than imagination. I’m quiet and sometimes I’m being labelled as shy, while some simply say I’m an introvert.

FROM DESPERATION

FROM DESPERATION

FROM DESPERATION

Dear, my heart is in pain
Since you took the night train,
I yelled out day and night,
Cried for you to come back,
Even asked the Lord why
We could not both survive,
Why he did not let me
Leave with you my lady;

Only the noisy steel
Of each single cold wheel
Is giving an answer:
It’s over! It’s over!
But I still can’t believe
That my pain can’t be eased,
That I will fight the cold
Without your smile to hold;

You were calling me Dear
When they called your name near,
You should pay for others,
For some of your brothers,
You my one, my Springtime,
My Moon and my Sunshine,
I cannot help crying,
Without you I’m sinking;

The desperate mind. Source: Internet images

The desperate mind. Source: Internet images

How can I rise again,
Can they, lords of this rain,
Poor men amongst the poor,
Show the way to that door…
Your train is far away,
Too far from the next day,
Only another train
Can heal me from my pain.

RAY NDEBI

 

 

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

My name is Théodore René Ndebi, born in Cameroon. I graduated in Banking Management. But what really makes me proud and happy is WRITING !!!!! I started writing around 1990. I write the most I can.

I mostly write for children’s future. As a child, I had always dreamt of a world where poor children and orphans could be happy as well. I have many unpublished collections in French: Chaque Jour Un Poème, Rêve D’un Soir, La Missive Du Petit Prince, Suis-Je Assez Bien Pour Toi… I’m also author of unpublished novels in French (Cierge Noir, Plus Violent Que L’amour, Les Fruits De La Tempête…). My first published novel; THE LAST GHOST/Son Of Struggle got published in 2013 by AuthorhouseUK; it appears in the LOS Angeles Times Festival Of Books Catalogue 2014 Page 8. Available online @ Amazon, Kindle, AuthorhouseUK, Barnes & Noble, Indie. I wrote numerous award winning texts. I am a Book Reviewer and Translator. I am a member of OneAfricanChild since 2013 and Co-Founder of Le Salon Du Livre Yaounde-Cameroon.

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